Tuesday, October 4, 2016

"Louisiana is one of eight states that has more opioid prescriptions than
it has residents. The state has the sixth highest
prescription-per-capita rate at 1.03 pain-killer prescriptions written
per Louisiana resident in 2015.

But Holcombe argues more can be done, like making better use of the
Prescription Monitoring Program operated by the Louisiana Board of
Pharmacy.
The database includes anyone in Louisiana that has been
prescribed a controlled substance. The problem, Holcombe points out, is
that it is not mandatory for every prescriber to check first.
“It
has been hugely important, but curiously, it is required that
pharmacists check it before administering the prescription but not
physicians before prescribing,” he explained.
Changing that would
be “a very, very simple thing that could be done to squelch the
over-prescribing taking place,” Holcombe said."

On September 27, Governor Jerry Brown signed into law a bill that
requires all prescribers to check the state-run prescription database
(known as CURES 2.0) before prescribing opioid painkillers, sedatives or
any other schedule II, III or IV drugs.